Home Air Purification System Overview

Along with the increase of population and industry comes the increased threat of indoor air pollution. Indoor air pollution has been implicated in many health problems like asthma and bronchitis. Many homeowners are successfully improving the air they breathe within their homes by using home air purification systems. Let's take a look at the different types available and how they work.

Filters

Some air purifiers work to clean air by passing the air through a filter material to remove any particles. These are generally just known as air cleaners and are typically a component of a traditional cooling or heating system. They can limit air flow throughout the system, however, leading to a drop in efficiency.

High Energy Particulate Air

High Energy Particulate Air (HEPA) filters use a technique called corona discharge to ionize or charge particles. Most air particles have a neutral charge. The HEPA filter changes their polarity, making them attracted to the opposite charge. The filter will have plates of both charges within it to attract positively or negatively-charged particles. Also, particles of opposite charges will attract each other, increasing their weight and allowing them to safely settle out of the air.

Ozone Generators

This type of air purifier functions similarly to an ionizing purifier, but changes oxygen molecules into ozone- a molecule with three oxygen atoms. Oxygen in the air has two oxygen atoms. Exposing it to UV light or a corona discharge makes it split into distinct oxygen atoms. Some of these atoms then create ozone.

Adsorbents

Adsorbent air purifiers utilize an adsorbent material to remove odors, chemicals, and fumes in the air of the home. Adsorption, as opposed to absorption, is the mechanism whereby one substance is captured by another substance. Activated charcoal is the absorbent material most often used. Activated charcoal is regular charcoal that has been mechanically processed to dramatically increase the surface area available to trap contaminents. A tiny amount of activated charcoal could cover an area as large or larger than a tennis court if stretched out.

Contaminants are trapped in its many microscopic pores. Some substances are drawn in by an electric charge. Some molecules react with the charcoal and are bonded to it. The increased surface area provides many places for materials to be trapped and removed from the air inside the home.

UV Light

Ultraviolet radiation purifiers use UV lamps to destroy pollutants that are biological, like bacteria, viruses, allergens, and airborne mold that can grow on HVAC surfaces. They compliment, rather than replace, normal purification systems.

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